Presidential candidate Fisher leads polls

Prague, Oct 15 (CTK) - Czech former caretaker prime minister Jan Fischer has widened his lead at the head of presidential candidates by 2.4 percent, to 30.1 percent, according to a poll conducted by the polling agency ppm factum in early October and released yesterday.

The second place would go to former left-wing prime minister Milos Zeman with 21.9 percent.

As a result, Fischer and Zeman would advance to the second round of the presidential election. There is a wide gap between them and the rest of the candidates.

A poll released by the STEM agency yesterday indicated that Fischer is the clear favourite with a 13-percent lead over Zeman.

According to STEM, Fischer won support from 29.8 percent of the polled and Zeman from 16.5 percent. This poll showed that Social Democrat (CSSD) deputy chairman Jiri Dienstbier is gaining on Zeman, with 13.9 percent.

The authors of the ppm factum poll said Fischer's poll ratings have been growing since the moment economist Jan Svejnar withdrew from the race in September. According to the STEM pollsters, Dienstbier profited from Svejnar's withdrawal.

In the ppm factum poll, the third place was assumed by tourism businessman Tomio Okamura with 7.9 percent, followed by leader of TOP 09, Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg, and Dienstbier with 6.6 percent and 6.5 percent, respectively.

Vladimir Franz, a painter and composer with tattoos all over his body, is popular with 4.5 percent of Czechs and a similar proportion of votes would be cast for the head of the extra-parliamentary Sovereignty party Jana Bobosikova and the Senate deputy chairman, official candidate of the Civic Democratic Party (ODS), Premysl Sobotka.

According to STEM, Sobotka won 6.5 percent, Schwarzenberg 5.5 percent and Bobosikova 4.3 percent.

STEM asked the respondents which candidates are acceptable for them. Again, Fischer is the most acceptable (68 percent), followed by Zeman and Dienstbier (each 47 percent). On the other hand, the least acceptable are considered Franz, lawyer Klara Samkova and Ladislav Jakl, secretary to outgoing President Vaclav Klaus.

The first Czech direct presidential election is scheduled for January 11-12, 2013.

The ppm factum poll was conducted on a sample of almost 1000 Czechs over 18 on October 4-11. The STEM poll was conducted on more than 1000 respondents from September 24 to October 2.